February 25, 2025
• The annual production of milk for the United States in 2024 was down slightly at 226 billion pounds, according to USDA’s Milk Production report. With that said, total annual milk production has risen 8.3% since 2015.
• Milk production per cow averaged 24,178 pounds in 2024, which was 61 pounds more than 2023. Over the past 10 years, milk production per cow has increased 8.1%.
• The national dairy herd totaled 9.34 million head last year, up a revised 3,000 head from the previous report, but down 42,000 head from the year prior. Since 2015, the average number of milk cows on farms in the United States has risen 0.2%.
• According to USDA’s Cattle on Feed report, cattle and calves on feed for the slaughter market in the United States for feedlots with the capacity of 1,000 or more head totaled 11.7 million head on February 1.
• Placements in feedlots during January totaled 1.82 million head. Marketings of fed cattle during January totaled 1.87 million head.
February 18, 2025
• According to the USDA’s Farm and Land in Farms report, there were an estimated 1.88 million farms in the U.S. in 2024, which was about 15,000 fewer farms than the previous year. Total land in farms was roughly 876 million acres, with the average farm size of 466 acres.
• The report also indicated the number of farms dropped for across all sales classes except for the $1 million or more sales class. This sales class also captured nearly 1.5 million more acres in 2024 compared to the previous year.
• It’s last call to register for two novel endophyte renovation workshops hosted by the Alliance for Grassland Renewal. Find more information about the Tennessee or Kentucky events here.
• Start planning how you’ll revegetate muddy hay-feeding areas this spring.
• Be careful grazing pregnant cows near pine trees.
February 11, 2025
• Alfalfa hay exports totaled 160,619 metric tons (MT) in December, according to USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service. Year-end alfalfa hay exports reached 2.128 million MT, which was about 3% less than the previous year.
• All other hay exports totaled 87,863 MT for the month of December, pushing the yearly total to roughly 1.051 million MT. That was about 10% greater year-over-year, according to USDA’s estimates.
• Here’s how you can get cows to eat poor-quality hay.
• Have you considered leasing cows to expand your grazing herd?
• Cattle can suffer from grass tetany and nitrate poisoning in the winter, too.
February 4, 2025
• The total number of cattle and calves in the U.S. was 86.7 million head as of January 1. That was down 1% year-over-year, making it the sixth-consecutive year of decline, according to USDA’s Cattle report released last week.
• The same report estimated that dairy heifer inventories remain tight at 3.9 million head, which is the lowest recorded inventory since 1978.
• Do you know your costs of forage production? Use this calculator to estimate what you need to earn to make a profit.
• Follow these timely tips on frost seeding and soil fertility.
• Try these strategies to maintain a healthy rumen environment during the hay feeding season.